Cat lover needed to care for six cats in Central Algarve - one mile from beach

About this assignment

We're looking for someone who loves cats to house/pet sit for us for two weeks in June. We are staying in Portugal/Spain for our 15–day holiday so our dates are flexible, however we want to travel within June, leaving on a Friday or Saturday and returning on a Saturday or Sunday.

Ideally, you would arrive with us the day before we leave so you can get to know our feline family and we can show you around. We can accommodate you for an additional day or two after our return, but we would need to reclaim our desks.

We need you to take good care of our gorgeous three-year-old boys, Caesar and Bruno, plus our little ‘feral’ family who will be around ten months by June. Tyson, Nettie, Storm and Midge are equally engaging and live in our home with us.

Altogether, you will be looking after three boys and three girls – all are sterilised and healthy.

What responsibilities are required of the house sitter

Feeding all cats twice a day and topping up their water (inside and outside). We leave hard food out throughout the day and feed soft food morning and teatime. We wash the cat dishes at least once a day.

Our cats are fine to be left all day (as long as there is always dried food and water available). We'd prefer they weren’t left overnight unless it's an emergency.

We have a cat flap in the front door. As of early April, only the boys are using it. We leave the kitchen patio door open for access to our rear garden (we have neighbours on both sides and the garden is inaccessible from any public area).

We’d also like you to water our garden every few days.

We would expect the house to be kept clean and tidy in our absence.

Absolutely no smoking of any kind in or around the house as Tracy is asthmatic.

We have used petsitters before - and have been petsitters ourselves - thus it's really important to us to find people who value reliability, trust and honesty.

What are the good features of the property and location

Armação de Pêra is a small seaside resort which is popular with Portuguese families and really only gets busy in July and August

There is a wide, paved promenade along the seafront with numerous cafes and restaurants and the sandy beach stretches for several kilometres. This will be perfect for evening strolls throughout June with everything open but without the summer crowds.

Just beyond Armação to the east – and within easy walking distance – lies Salgados lagoon, one of the most important freshwater wetlands in the Algarve. It’s very popular with birdwatchers and is a fantastic place to stroll, cycle and run. On the hill above Salgados is Pêra, a typical whitewashed Algarvian village with cobbled streets and great views, and, if you fancy an evening stroll there’s a great wine bar and several restaurants in nearby Porches (unless you are vegetarian, we can certainly recommend A Rampa – although booking is essential).

In terms of location, Armação de Pêra is approximately 53 km west of Faro, about 15 km west of Albufeira and 47 km east of Lagos. Ferragudo, Carvoeiro and the iconic Praia da Marinha are all a short drive away, while the Serra de Monchique (with the Algarve’s highest hills) are just over 40 km away.

There are supermarkets – Lidl, Continente and Pingo Doce – just one kilometre from our home. The new Sudoeste Retail Park is four kilometres away and Algarve Shopping is just under 12 km away.

We live in a three-bedroom townhouse (about 22 years old) with sea views from the first-floor terrace and a field directly below us (with footpaths crossing it). We’re the last-but-one property on the cobbles so there is no passing traffic.

We offer our house sitters a double guest room on the ground floor with a private bathroom (shower only) located a few metres along the hallway. There are patio doors onto the rear garden. We have front and rear gardens (although the rear garden is an ongoing project) and a front terrace where you can enjoy the warm evenings.

We have Netflix and had fibre internet installed last year.

We don’t offer luxury – or even a swimming pool – however, we hope our proximity to the beautiful Algarve coast will make your stay perfect in other ways.

What does the house sitter need to consider before applying for this assignment

We live on a hill so you’ll need to be relatively fit to walk back from Armação de Pêra (the quickest route is the steepest but we’ll show you our preferred walking routes).

The bus station (really just a pull-in) is just over one kilometre away; however, the nearest train station is about 7–8 km inland at Poco Barreto. You can survive here without a car, but your stay is likely to be more enjoyable if you have your own wheels.

While we are flexible on dates, we need to leave here on Friday or Saturday and return on Saturday or Sunday two weeks later. We will be bookig train tickets after the exact dates are agreed with our petsitters and so will not be able to change the dates after this.

Can I bring my own pets?

No, sorry.

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